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Group Size: 1 to 25
Time Needed: 10 minutes
Goal: To help participants get to know each other
Audience: Parents, Couples, Teens, Singles, Children
Special Considerations: None
Resources Needed: Play Dough

Step-by-Step Instructions

  1. Before class, place a large ball of play dough (in a baggie) in front of each seat. You can usually divide one can into two or three balls or make your own dough.
  2. As people sit down, encourage them to play with the dough.
  3. Once class had started, ask participants to take five minutes to sculpt their dough into an object that represents them.
  4. Have participants go around the circle and share their creations as they introduce themselves. In larger groups, they can walk around the room introducing themselves.
  5. After introductions have been made, participants can either save their creations or return the Play Dough to the bags. If they put the Play Dough back into bag, explain to them that they can take it out and play with it during class as a way to stay alert and focused during discussions.

Tips for Discussion and Processing

Not only is this a great way for people to introduce themselves and to get people talking, you will get a glimpse of the creativity of class participants. Be sure to refer back to how creative the participants were during this exercise if they seem to get stuck on certain problems throughout the course of the workshop or class.

Note: These activities can be modified to reflect a variety of skills.